Ink, Brush, Paper, Body, Camera

I managed to write 4 scrolls (3.5 x 12 f) sheets today, in two sessions, in about two and a half hours.

I struggled with my brushes the first couple of days of writing during the rehearsal and the first full day performance. The brushes I used in Passages I: Wonders of the Sea with thicker acrylic paint do not work very well with the black acrylic ink I’m using in this piece.  They get too loaded and unwieldy. I settled on Liquitex ink just a few days before coming to Ottawa, so I did not get to test my brushes well.

I’m glad I had the foresight of bringing a variety of brushes including a few that are old and/or cheap brushes. These are the ones I ended up using!  They stiffer brush works better with the ink in producing the defined strokes I need for Farsi calligraphy. On 1st and 2nd scrolls I was using the better but softer brushes and getting poor results. I couldn’t recognize my own hand-writing. Once I switched to the older and cheaper brushes, the process became easier and I got into a flow. By 4th scroll I totally found my rhythm and the way to use the brush to get what I needed.

Black ink: 1 ivory black soft body added to 2 x 150 ml carbon black ink

Red: 1 tube of soft body cadmium red medium hue + 1 tube of soft body cadmium red deep hue + 1/2 burnt umber + airbrush medium

I’m hungry and tired and have to leave. To be continued…

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